Cycling Time Trials Set to Transform the Racing Scene with New ‘Tribes’ Team Competition and Event Finder Tool
In a move set to revolutionize time trial racing in the UK, Cycling Time Trials (CTT) has unveiled their latest initiatives: the innovative ‘Tribes’ team competition and a user-friendly ‘Event Finder’ functionality. These new features are designed to encourage widespread participation, foster team spirit, and make racing more accessible than ever before.
For those unacquainted, time trialling is often seen as a solitary sport where cyclists battle the clock and their own limits over set distances, sometimes spending more time travelling to ideal courses than actually racing. Despite this solitary nature, a thriving community of riders gathers at event HQs, sharing their passion over tea and cake as they await results. CTT aims to take this community spirit to the next level with the Tribes competition.
Introducing Tribes: Race Locally, Compete Nationally
The Tribes initiative brings a fresh twist to the traditional format by emphasizing local participation and team performance over simply chasing the fastest finish times. This approach encourages riders to compete in local events, contributing to their team’s national standing without the need to travel extensively in search of ‘fast’ courses. By promoting local racing, Tribes not only reduces travel costs and carbon footprints but also makes the sport more inclusive and accessible.
Participation is straightforward: riders are automatically entered into the Tribes competition when they sign up for any CTT Open Event. The competition is powered by Spindata, a system that ranks time trial results across the UK based on time and relative position to other riders. This ensures a level playing field, where the focus is on personal performance rather than external conditions.
Tribes operates on four key principles:
- Choose Your Bike
- Ride Three Races
- Make Up Your Tribe
- Improve Your Score
By harkening back to the golden era of team competitions in the 1960s and 1970s, Tribes aims to appeal to veteran cyclists while introducing a dynamic and engaging concept for newer participants.
Event Finder: Your Gateway to Racing
Complementing Tribes is the new Event Finder tool on the CTT website. This intuitive feature allows users to find local events still open for entry using a simple postcode search. Integrated with modern Google cloud technology, the Event Finder includes calendars, route planners, and social sharing options, making it easier than ever for cyclists to find and join races.
Andrea Parish, Chair of CTT, expressed her excitement: “The new Tribes initiative and Event Finder tool are game changers for us. We aim to make time trialling more accessible and engaging, fostering both individual and team growth in the sport.”
Nick Wild, founder of Spindata and the mastermind behind Tribes, shared his vision: “The integration of Spindata and the introduction of a standalone category for road bikes have paved the way for Tribes. We hope this new competition, alongside CTT’s Event Finder, will inspire more riders to start their racing journeys.”
For more information about these exciting developments, visit the CTT website at www.cyclingtimetrials.org.uk. Everything you need to know about Tribes can be found at tribes.cyclingtimetrials.org.uk/about.